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Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter S. Thompson was an American author and journalist, and founder of the gonzo journalism writing style. He was well known, perhaps notorious, for his reputation as a brash, chain-smoking counter-cultural voice. Connections Thompson is a descendant of the eminent surgeon John Hunter, an ancestor of his mother's. He is named in Hunter's honor. While working as a sports reporter at an Air Force base from 1956 - 1958, Thompson reported on the games of the Air Force's football team, which included the future professional football stars Bart Starr, Zeke Bratkowski, and Max McGee. When Thompson applied for a job at The San Juan Star ''in 1960, he was rejected by the managing editor, William J. Kennedy. However, Kennedy and Thompson became friends, and Kennedy helped him to work as a freelancer for other papers. Thompson met Lawrence Ferlinghetti at his famous City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco in 1960. Thompson was a friend of Don Johnson. Thompson was a longtime admirer of Ernest Hemingway, and was highly influenced by his writing, even typing out word for word Hemingway's book ''A Farewell to Arms when he first developed an interest in writing fiction. While working as a journalist at the National Observer, Thompson traveled to Ketchum, Idaho in 1964 to investigate and report on Ernest Hemingway's suicide. While there, Thompson stole a pair of elk antlers above the door in Hemingway's cabin. While attending the 1967 Democratic Convention, Thompson attended speeches by and possibly met Presidential candidate Hubert Humphrewy, Vice President candidate Edmund Muskie, as well as Eugene McCarthy and George McGovern. Thompson became a lifelong friend of McGovern afterward. Thompson was a friend of Oscar Zeta Acosta, and took a roadtrip to Las Vegas with him in 1970. The trip would become the basis for Thompson's most famous book, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, with Acosta serving as the model for the character Dr. Gonzo. Thompson followed and dedicatedly reported on the campaign trail of Richard Nixon versus George McGovern during the Presidential Campaign trail of 1972. He favored McGovern, and as time went on, became a sharper and sharper critic of Nixon, publishing biting articles in the Rolling Stone magazine, which were widely read. After Nixon's death in 1994, Thompson expressed outright hatred for the former President, calling him a backstabber, and saying that "his casket should have been launched into one of those open sewage canals..." Thompson also called Nixon a "swine of a man," "a jabbering dupe of a president," and an "evil man." He said that only those who believe in the Devil coming to earth in physical form could truly understand how evil Nixon was. He also stated that if there was any justice, Nixon's "rancid carcass" should be in the "belly of a hammerhead shark." Thompson met Bill Murray in 1979, when the actor was cast to play him in the film Where the Buffalo Roam, released in 1980. The movie was met with mediocre results, but Thompson and Murray became friends. Within a few years, Murray would become one of Thompson's most trusted confidantes. Thompson interviewed Bill Clinton in 1992, while he was campaigning. They had lunch together at a steakhouse in Little Rock, Arkansas. While traveling on the presidential campaign trail in 2004, Thompson accompanied presidential candidate John Kerry. The article that he wrote about his experience was the last that he ever published. Kerry and Thompson became friends over this time. Thompson was a critic of George W. Bush, calling his presidency "the downward spiral of dumbness." Despite his intense and well known hatred for Richard Nixon, he stated in 2004 that would "happily" vote for Nixon over Bush. Later in his life, Thompson was a close friend of Johnny Depp, who starred in the film version of Thompson's famous book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Before filming for the movie started, Depp moved into Thompson's basement to "study" his persona for the role. Thompson was a friend of Ed Bradley, Charlie Rose, Jack Nicholson, John Cusack, Benicio del Toro, Sean Penn, Josh Hartnett, Lyle Lovett, and John Oates. All of them attended his funeral ceremony in 2005. Places Louisville, Kentucky, USA - Born here, 1937. Grew up here, 1937 - 1955. San Antonio, Texas, USA - Attended military school here, 1955. Belleville, Illinois, USA - Stationed at Air Force base here, 1955 - 1956. Fort Walton Beach, Florida, USA - Stationed at Air Force base here, worked here, 1956 - 1958. Tallahassee, Florida, USA - Attended university here, 1956 - 1958. Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA - Lived here, 1958. New York, New York, USA - Lived here, 1958 - 1959. Middletown, New York, USA - Lived here, 1959 - 1960. San Juan, Puerto Rico - Lived here, 1960. Seattle, Washington, USA - Visited here, 1960. San Francisco, California, USA - Lived here, 1960 - 1961, and 1965 - 1967. Big Sur, California, USA - Lived here, 1961 - 1962. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Visited here, 1962. Aspen, Colorado, USA - Lived here, 1963 - 1964. Got married here, 1963. Glen Ellen, California, USA - Lived here, 1963 - 1965. Ketchum, Idaho, USA - Traveled here, 1964. Woody Creek, Colorado, USA - Lived here, 1967 - 2005. Died here, 2005. Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - Visited here, 1970. Kinshasa, Republic of Congo - Visited here, 1974. Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam - Traveled here, 1975. Honolulu, Hawaii, USA - Lived here, 1980 - 1981. St. George's, Grenada - Traveled here, 1983. Little Rock, Arkansas, USA - Traveled here, 1992. Lists People Who Committed Suicide Category:People Category:Writers Category:1937 Births Category:2005 Deaths Category:People From the United States Category:Hunter